Crochet How-To: Single Crochet Stitch

I've had a couple people say to me "you have to teach me how to crochet!" and I always answer with, "I totally will!" ... and then never do. Part of this is just because it doesn't come naturally to me to sit down with someone and try to teach them. It's not how I learned, and so I'm not entirely sure how to teach it. I taught myself crochet by reading lots of craft blogs, watching videos online, and endlessly tearing out stitches that didn't look right. And in all this, there's something I've come to realize about crochet: If you can master the single crochet stitch - you're pretty much good to go. It's sort of the same idea as knowing how to do the knit stitch in knitting. It's not all there is to know, but once you've got it down, you're already well on your way to being able to make some great stuff!

Today I'm going to do a tutorial of something I wish I had found when I very first began crocheting: a photo guide on the Single Crochet (sc) stitch.

If you're looking through books or patterns, single crochet will most likely be described as something along the lines of: "place hook through V, yarn over, pull through, yarn over, pull through 2 loops". I'll go through each of these steps with pictures. (I always learn better with pictures!)



Step 1. Place hook through V. Wondering what the heck that means? It's this:

When looking at the top of a sc stitch, it creates a sort of sideways V (assuming you've already gotten your chain row down). So you just want to put your hook directly under that sideways V. 

Step 2. Yarn over. This literally means, put your yarn over your hook. Like this:

Step 3: Pull through. Grab your yarn you've just pulled over your hook, and pull it under the V. This will give you 2 loops on your hook. 

Steps 4 and 5: Yarn over. Same stuff as Step 2 - just place your yarn over the hook. Easy peasy. Pull through 2 loops. Just grab your newly 'yarned over' yarn and pull it through both loops on your hook. 

Step 6: Get addicted to crochet. There you go, you've completed a sc stitch. You can now make a scarf, blanket, pot-holder, hankerchief - really anything that is just stitched flat can be made with single crochet stitches. 

Random tips & tricks when beginning crochet: Try not to pull stuff too tight, or leave anything too loose. This is called the 'tension' of the stitch, and it's really something you learn by trial and error. If all your work is bunching up or you can hardly fit your hook under your stitches, you're crocheting too tightly - try letting the yarn have a little more give when working your stitches.

If you really wanna go nuts and start making hats/amigurumi/dog sweaters/pretty much anything in the world - the next thing you'll want to conquer is crocheting in the round. Good luck and have fun!!

Week 2: Crochet Progress

Alright, so, not so much on the great crochet progress to show you this week. It was the week following Easter, and as I work at a church, it's a pretty crazy time for me and the week totally flew by. I also got an order in from the UK (my first international order, woo!), so I spent some time working those up. Aren't they cute? It's a matching set for bro/sis chihuahuas who have been invited to a wedding in June. Too funny!

As far as Artisan's Market progress... I did finish the tuxedo I was working on last week. And I love the colors in it, especially the little pink bow tie - gets me every time.

And that's all that I have to show you this week! On a normal week, it'd be pretty good - problem is that time is ticking down and I still have so much to do! I've asked my husband to hold me to my new personal rule: "If I'm sitting down, I should be crocheting". We'll see how that goes!

Oh, and also - Happy Late Easter from the little ones!

Week 1: Crochet Progress

Well, it's been almost a week now since I've challenged myself to crochet every day. And I've been able to keep that challenge up so far! I now have 3 finished dresses and a half-finished tuxedo! Here's what I worked on this week:

Can you tell I've got lots of yarn in these colors?

I think this summer fun dress was my favorite for the week, I love the way the yarn looks and the little belts make such cute accents :) 

And of course, Chloe helped me start the tuxedo too: 

Overall I had a pretty good crochet week :) I just gotta keep it up now!

My 30 Day Challenge!

Okay, so it's not exactly a 30 day challenge, it's more like a 43 Day Challenge, but that just doesn't make as catchy of a title. I've got 43 days before the Artisan Market in Stilwell where I need to have a pretty decent amount of inventory ready to sell. I'd really like to have at least 30 items ready to go. Since it takes me about a day and a half to make a dog dress... the math on that one doesn't completely add up - hence why this is going to be a challenge!

In April, I'm challenging myself to crochet every single day. No matter what! I'll try to check in every few days here with my progress of what I've managed to finish to help keep me accountable to this!

Here's what I'm working on finishing up now - an XXS Littlest Bo Peep dog dress in pink and cream. I really like making these since they work up so quickly with the V-stitch's open weave. I should be able to finish this today and start another dress as well. Or maybe a tuxedo for the little misters that need clothes too!

Wish me luck! :)

Cobo's Closet Goes Live!

Cobo’s Closet has been around for a while, but the blog and website are new!

I'll be sharing my crochet projects, patterns, and life in general here. To find out more about Cobo's Closet, visit my main site.

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